Pages

Monday, July 26, 2010

I've been experimenting with short-row hats a la Leethal, but with my own twists. Earlier, in my recent FO post, I demonstrated my failed attempt to do an "illusion hat," something that I'd been warned might not work because heads happen to be round. "Round schmound!" I said to that, only to find that I'd wasted a couple days drawing charts and following them and glean the result of a weird, kind of nubbly, hat.

But I prevailed! Not with that concept, because it was drenched in fail-sauce, but I had another idea: what if I cast on a few stitches and made some short row ear-flaps! It would be so cool--you could apply it to any short-row hat you could want! Just add some stitches at the end (or beginning) of a couple wedges and you have an ear-flap!

These guys got a little long:

But that actually made them long enough to fasten to a button at the very center of the crown--a fun touch.

What do you guys think? Should my next try have more reggler-sized earflaps or should I keep them long? (I'll probably try doing shorter ones to compare, anyway.)

I recently discovered that I could buy yarn on eBay. That was a dangerous discovery! I ended up with 6 skeins of Debbie Bliss alpaca/silk dk, 5 skeins of Malabrigo silky merino, and one skein of sock.

Gorgeous, right? One thing, and it's a big'un: I don't have a ball winder. Is it worth it to buy one? I don't work at a yarn store, so I'd feel like a big pain if I asked if I could use theirs, especially considering how sticky Malabrigo tends to be, what with the kettle-dying. It's so pretty, though!

Anyway, the Debbie Bliss comes in balls already, so I searched and found the perfect pattern for this lovely cardigan:

I love it! It's way way way too warm to wear anywhere these days, but come fall I will get tons of use for it!

Friday, July 16, 2010

Also, my Wicker Park has hit the shops! If you buy it now, it's only $5, but I may raise the price to $6, because it's really complex and worth it! It's been so amazing working with the testers, solving their problems (hopefully!) and viewing their progress. I owe them so much!The next pattern to hit the store soon is my Wolcott, a fun, versatile hat that's "much easier than it looks," according to my internet friend Alex who test knit it for me. Mine turned out a lot slouchier than the testers, so I may have to knit another to see if I wrote the instructions wrong. I don't think I did; I may just be a super loose knitter or have an abnormally-small head. We shall see, and the pattern should be ready in a week or so!

This hat can be worn two ways--slouchy:Or as a beanie! I hope you guys love it and buy it and make me millions of dollars! ;)

When I get obsessed with knitting--truly obsessed--I forget to blog about it. Well, I am still obsessed, but I'm working on a cardigan right now and those tend to bore me a little, no matter how soft the Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk is on my fingers. Here are a few recently finished pieces!

I test knit this pullover for Jennifer Thompson late this spring. It was a really simple, quick knit, and flattering, too! I'm new to sweaters, and this was a pleasure--changing colors helps with the boredom of knitting a sweater, a tiny bit, and since it was bottom-up, all the exciting stuff happened at the end, making me stay up really late until I'd finished it!This guy, Vahl, was test-knit for the creative Alexandra Tinsley. I kind of stink at changing colors in the round, so there's a seam-like thing going up the back, but it's way fun! I gave it to my friend Tirzah at her bachelorette party last night! Pom-poms!And as payment for the test, Alex sent me the Maelstrom Beret pattern I'd been coveting. I gave this as an engagement gift to my brother's fiancee, Liz. This is not Liz wearing it, but I bet it looks great on her!And then I attempted to design an illusion hat. I failed because head happen to be round and illusions need to be long. Stupid long illusions and round heads! But I like how this stripy hat looks, and I'd probably like it better without the nubbly illusion attempts. I have an idea, but I think I'll surprise you with it!And down here is Reagan Rush's Leafprints Hat, bought with cold, hard, honest Pay Pal, but it's only $3.50! And I like it a lot.